If you have ever had a piece of work stolen and published elsewhere online, you know that it can feel pretty hopeless. Nasty content thieves just don’t seem to care how they acquire anything, and their plagiarism occasionally rewards them with sweet advert revenue. Don’t despair, though, for there is hope, and it comes in the form of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).

In layman’s terms, it’s just another controversial United States government copyright act. You may have heard about it before, and it occasionally makes its rounds in discussion sites like RedditReditr: A Desktop Client for Reddit With Embedded ContentReditr: A Desktop Client for Reddit With Embedded ContentDo you love Reddit, but find the user interface infuriating? Try a new way to get at the best content on the web. Reditr shows you the latest posts from your favorite subreddits in easy-to-skim...Read More (where the topical conversations have to do with how a big record label shut some kid’s YouTube channel operation down). Rarely do you hear about how someone can file a DCMA takedown notice on their own, and despite your opinion on piracy or content theft, this law actually helps out the little guy, too.

For example, the DMCA outlaws every single video you’ve uploaded with a credit that says, “I do not own the rights to the song in this clip, but because of fair use policies, I am allowed to use it.” It isn’tfair use. Actually, it’s blatant copyright infringement.

What’s A DMCA Takedown Notice?

Takedown notices sound a bit more exciting than they actually are. In my mind, I like to imagine them as bounty slips in which virtual mercenaries can assassinate one’s online profile. That’s not the case, though. In reality, they are just digital cease and desist notices. They come in the form of an email or letter, and it looks a little something like this:

To Whom It May Concern:

My name is [NAME] of [COMPANY/WEBSITE], and I am the copyright holder of the [TYPE OF WORK] being infringed at:

[URLS OF COPYRIGHTED WORKS]

The original copies of the [TYPE OF WORK] can be found here:

[URLS OF ORIGINAL WORKS]

I have also attached images depicting the infringing material in an effort to assist with their removal from the offending websites.

This message is official notification under Section 512(c) of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”) requiring removal of the aforementioned infringements. Please remove the material from these websites immediately and also take appropriate action against the offender to prevent future infringement.

I have a good faith belief that use of the material described above on the offending web pages is not authorized by myself, the copyright owner, or the law. I swear, under penalty of perjury, that the information provided here is entirely accurate, and I am the copyright owner.

Sincerely,

[YOUR NAME]

How Can I Issue A DMCA Takedown Notice?

Your first plan of action is to do a WHOIS inquiry on the domain to find out all of the necessary information:

After that, search for the host and registrar’s legal contact information. Write out a DMCA notice of your own (you can steal mine above – it’s OK), and send it to the host, registrar, and the website owner’s address. Just in case, attach the screenshots of the infringing pages, and BCC yourself into the email as well. If you are really paranoid, take screenshots of the sent email in case you accidentally delete it.

Next, you’ll need to wait for just a little while. This is normal, and sometimes registrars need to process information a bit before they can reply. As expected, the copyright infringer also may not want to respond right away. If you don’t hear anything after a few days, you might want to break out the big guns and consult a lawyer.

As a note, I’d like to make it clear that this is not professional legal advice. Take everything I have to say in this article with a grain of salt, and please consult an actual attorney if you are seriously considering any legal action.

Have you ever filed a DMCA takedown notice? Did it come out well for you, or did further actions have to be taken?

DMCA notifications work well if you are the authorised copyright holder and the target host is DMCA compliant. Many of the seedier sites provide lip service only, or worse still, DMCA notices disappear into a black hole. In particular, "bulletproof" hosts don't care one bit because they're not in the US. Also the DMCA is generally respected worldwide by most reputable hosts but be mindful that it's an American law which technically only has scope to material hosted by organisations in the USA.

Registrars are sometimes retiscent to comply but if you can prove a breach of their own ToS that can sometimes kicks things into touch.

I've sent out dozens of DMCA notices to file sharing sites when policing my employer's IP... Surprisingly the best responses have been from Mediafire. Once you're verified as a reputable content owner, they give you fast-track account access to file DMCA reports so you can just fill in the URL field and type your name then submit. Much quicker and more efficient than writing out the same thing multiple times or using arduous custom forms with CAPTCHAs etc... All solely designed to make life as hard as possible and discourage content owners from asserting their legal and moral rights.

I am very happy that they finally come accross with that. The only negative point is the practical implementation of the law, There will always be part of the world where no one will care about this. Sad...